John Ventimiglia

A year ago, Frank Messina noted, a large crowd turned out at the Cornelia Street Café in New York City’s Greenwich Village area, to pay tribute to a man with an important connection to College Park: the late Jack Kerouac. That event on Sept. 29 2013 was a fundraiser for the house that Kerouac lived in when he was a resident of College Park, noted Messina, the actor, poet and author of “Full Count: The Book of Mets Poetry.” It was obvious from that event, Messina said, that Kerouac’s work continues to resonate with readers, including young ones. “That’s something that Jack has done for me, as a younger writer,” Messina said....